Want Better Team Performance? Start here.
If you've ever been on a high functioning team, you know that's where the magic happens.
And creating that magic can feel elusive to leaders.
If you're looking for ways to strengthen team dynamics and performance, my next few editions are going to be for you!
What we're getting into today:
Power of a Team
Conditions for Success
As we look at the ingredients for creating high performing teams over the next few Fridays, I'm also thrilled to share that I'm embarking on an additional certification focused on using data-driven insights to increase team dynamics and performance.
(I'm jumping in feet first with Squadify and their killer platform & am super jazzed for the impact they're having on teams! 🥳 )
By sharing proven theories and components for successful teams, I hope you'll steal and leverage within your own teams.
Power of a Team
Teams can either drive powerful business results, or then can be a cost to the business.
It's on the team level that performance happens, learnings are shared, efficiencies are established and connections are forged. That's if you're a high performing team.
I love this quote: “Performance is delivered by 'star teams' more than 'teams of stars.'"
And despite the critical nature of the impact of teams, most development efforts are focused on the individual. Not the team.
We focus on developing an individual's skills, but where's the focus on building the team's capabilities?
It starts by acknowledging what a Team is.
It's not just your reporting structure.
While those who report to you are one version of a team, teams (or squads) are actually all throughout the business.
Special projects and product releases are two common spaces where we see teams forming.
Then consider these as additional spaces where teams could form:
A Business Development Representative who partners with a few Account Executives and they lean on Rev Ops and Legal to close the deal.
A leader within Customer Success needing expanded functionality in a client dashboard and comes together with Product and Engineering to bring it to fruition.
Each person serves a different function, yet they are all working in service of the same goals.
Check this out…
Did you know, you can get a 20% lift in performance when naming these cross functional folks as part of a team?
What gets that gain is the belief they are all truly pulling in the same direction, working towards the same goal, feeling united and supported in their efforts.
(Note: this doesn't necessarily mean you have to actually change reporting structures, teams can still be acknowledged cross functionally.)
Pause here and quickly reflect:
What “teams” are you part of?
What makes it feel like a team?
What work are you doing and it's NOT feeling like a team effort?
Conditions for Success
Backed by boatloads of research and validation, I want to introduce the 3Cs model where teams can create the Conditions for Success to maximize impact, engagement, and performance.
This model has been successfully implemented for 25 years and has been validated by the London School of Economics as valid drivers of performance.
The 3Cs:
Clarity
Climate
Competence
Here's a quick view and description of each:
Source: Squadify
If you're wanting to up level your team's performance, I have two asks of you:
Reflect on the 3Cs framework, what's standing out to you?
Reflect on these questions:
Have I been clear?
Have I helped create an environment where they can succeed?
Have I helped people build the skills and behaviors to do this thing?
Over the next 3 weeks, we'll look at each C, starting with Competence.
Sneak peek: Competence is the first place we tend to look when there's an issue on the team, Competence is not the actual source of most team dynamic and performance issues.
Until next time…
Comment below and let me know what's on your mind!
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